Category: Theology
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13 Letters
There is no stretch of an imagination that would cause anyone to classify where I live as Urban. BUT I still appreciate what the folk at Reach Life have developed. 13 Letters is a curriculum designed with Urban Youth in mind. Taking the substance of the Paul’s letters, this curriculum applies Sound Doctrine to the…
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The Connection of the Law With the Gospel
There is a common question about how the Law of God and the Grace of God relate to one another. Some seem to wonder how they even co-exist. Spurgeon, though, when once asked how he reconciled the Law and the Gospel, replied: “There is no need to reconcile friends.” Granted, there is some tension between these two great Biblical…
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Externally Focused Quest
Most churches have a subtle, perhaps even unspoken, objective. It is driven by the question: “How can we be the best church in our community?” How a church answers that question determines the approach to membership, staffing, budget, etc. In a book I am now reading, Externally Focused Quest, authors Eric Swanson & Rick Rusaw ask…
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Being Sent
This past Sunday I offered a brief exposition of John 17.6-21 & John 20.21, explaining what it means to be “sent” into our community and world in the same way God the Father sent Jesus into our world. These texts demand that we understand, as John Stott says: “Our God is a missionary God.” They…
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How Can We Look Forward to Heaven?
Some time ago someone I encountered posed an interesting question: “How can we look forward to heaven when none of our favorite things are sure to be there?” C. S. Lewis’ offers a breathtaking answer: Let us construct a fable. Let us picture a woman thrown into a dungeon. There she bears and rears a…
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What is God Like?
What is God like? Describe to me the God you say you believe in. In the first chapter of his best selling book, Crazy Love, Francis Chan challenges his readers to ponder who God is. “Who is it that you are praying to?” Chan wants us to ask. I really appreciate that challenge and that…
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Doctrine
Do you want a good overview of the doctrines of the Christian faith? Would you be open to a introductory course, but are afraid people in your church might think lesser of you because of what you don’t know? (Most of them don’t know either, by the way.) re:Lit publications has developed Doctine by Mark…
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Theology for Life
As a pastor from a confessional denomination one of the more difficult tasks I regularly – even constantly – encounter is helping people past a distatse for doctrine. I understand why so many are so often hesitant to embrace any system of doctrine. “Doctrine divides” is a commen lament. And, regretably, it is often an…
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Pure As the Driven Snow
I don’t think I’ve ever met anyone who enjoys “old” snow – you know, the snow that has been around a few day, has blackened from plowing, is choppy from people playing in the yard. I know that’s not the type of snow my duaghter enjoys looking at. After the snowstorm this past Friday night,…
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A Jesus Manifesto
“Christians have made the gospel about so many things… Things other than Christ.” So opens the document, written by Leonard Sweet and Frank Viola, titled: A Jesus Manifesto. I’ve long been a fan of Leonard Sweet, our theological differences aside. But Sweet’s love for Jesus, his love for God’s people, and his amazing story-telling ability…
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Danger of Christian Complacency
It may defy common wisdom, but sound doctrine is important to the renewal of the contemporary church. While many view doctrine as divisive and unecesary trivia, recent studies by Thom Rainer, Ed Stetzer, and others, reveal that sound doctrine is a hallmark of churches that are the most effective in evangelism. Further, both writers, in addition…
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Contemporary Evangelical Creed
The following is a spoof on the substance of much of contemporary Evangelicalism. It is taken from a past edition of Modern Reformation, probably Jan/Feb 1997, but I am not sure of the original publication date. I know I may be stepping into a hornets nest here, but I post it because I find it…
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Infection of Complacency
Here is a thought from J.C. Ryle that transcends the gulf between 19th Century Britain to speak to 21st Century American Evangelicals: The times require distinct and decided views of Christian doctrine. I cannot withhold my conviction that the professing Church is as much damaged by laxity and indistinctness about matters of doctrine within, as…
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Glory Story: The Joel Osteen Phenomena
I’ve never quite understood the attraction. His words melt like cotton candy. Yet he has amassed the largest church and largest television audience in the United States. Sure, he may be a nice guy, but what is the allure of Joel Osteen? Like him or loathe him, Osteen’s influence is pervasive. I am frequently asked…
